Abstract
The objective of this study was to investigate the links between maternal and paternal bonding, parental practices, orientation toward peers, and the prevalence of drug use and antisocial behavior during late adolescence. A model was tested using structural equation modeling in order to verify the robustness of the investigated links across 3 countries: Canada, France, and Italy. A self-report questionnaire was given to a sample of 908 adolescents, with an equivalent number of girls and boys, in Grade 11. The questionnaire assessed the following variables: parental bonding, parental supervision, parental tolerance, orientation toward peers, involvement in physically aggressive antisocial behavior, non-physically aggressive antisocial behavior, and drug use. The model was robust across the 3 countries, thus confirming a path that identified quality of emotional bonds between adolescents and their parents as a distal variable acting upon deviant behaviors through the following mediators: parental supervision, parental tolerance, frequency of conflicts, and orientation toward peers.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allen, J. P., and Land, D. (1999). Attachment in adolescence. In Cassidy, J., and Shaver, P. R. (eds.), Handbook of Attachment: Theory, Research, and Clinical Applications. Guilford, New York, pp. 319–335.
Ary, D. V., Duncan, T. E., Duncan, S. C., and Hops, H. (1999). Adolescent problem behavior: The influence of parents and peers. Behav. Res. Ther. 37: 217–230.
Aseltine, R. H. (1995). A reconsideration of parental and peer influences on adolescent deviance. J. Health Soc. Behav. 36: 103–121.
Barber, B. K. (1992). Family, personality, and adolescent problem behavior. J. Marriage Fam. 54: 69–79.
Barber, B. K., and Olsen, J. A. (1997). Socialization in context: Connection, regulation, and autonomy in the family, school, neighborhood, and with peers. J. Adolesc. Res. 12: 287–315.
Barrera, M., Jr., Biglan, A., Ary, D., and Li, F. (2001). Replication of a problem behavior model with American Indians, Hispanic, and Caucasian youth. J. Early Adolesc. 21: 133–157.
Barrera, M., Jr., and Li, S. A. (1996). The relation of family support to adolescent's psychological distress and behavior problems. In Pierce, G. R., Sarason, B. R., and Sarason, I. G. (eds.), Handbook of the Social Support and the Family. Plenum Press, New York, pp. 313–343.
Baumrind, D. (1975). Early socialization and adolescent competence, In Dragastin, S. E., and Elder, G. (ed.), Adolescence in the Life Cycle. Hemisphere, Washington.
Berndt, T. J. (1979). Developmental changes in conformity to peers and parents. Dev. Psychol. 15: 608–613.
Blishen, B. R., Carroll, W. K., and Moore, C. (1987). A revisited socio-economic index for occupations in Canada. Can. Rev. Sociol. Anthropol. 13: 71–79.
Brook, J. S., Whiteman, M., Balka, E. B., and Cohen, P. (1997). Drug use and delinquency: Shared and unshared risk factors in African American and Puerto Rican adolescents. J. Genet. Psychol. 158: 25–39.
Brown, B. B., Mounts, N., Lamborn, S. D., and Steinberg, L. (1993). Parenting practices and peer group affiliation in adolescence. Child Dev. 63: 391–400.
Cernkovich, S. A., and Giordano, P. C. (1987). Family relationships and delinquency. Criminology 24: 295–321.
Chen, C., Greenberger, E., Lester, J., Dong, Q., and Guo M.-S. (1998). A cross-cultural study of family and peer correlates of adolescent misconduct. Dev. Psychol. 34: 770–781.
Claes, M., Lacourse E., Bouchard, C., and Perucchini, P. (2003). Parental practices in late adolescence, a comparison in three countries: Canada, France and Italy. J. Adolesc. 26: 387–399.
Collins, A. C., and Russel, G. (1991). Mother–child and father–child relationships in middle childhood and adolescence: A developmental analysis. Dev. Rev. 11: 99–136.
Collins, W. A. (1997). Relationships and development in adolescence: Interpersonal adaptation to individual change. Personal Relationships 1: 3–14.
Collins, W. A., and Repinski, D. J. (1994). Relationships during adolescence: Continuity and change in interpersonal perspectives. In Montemayor, R., Adams, G. R., and Gullotta, T. P. (eds.), Personal relationships during adolescence. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Csikszentmihalyi, L., and Larson, R. (1984). Being Adolescent: Conflict and Growth in the Teenage Years. Basic books, New York.
Dishion, T. J., Capaldi, D., Spracklen, K. M., and Li, F. (1995). Peer ecology and male adolescent drug use. Dev. Psychopathol. 7: 803–824.
Dishion, T. J., and McMahon, R. J. (1998). Parental monitoring and the prevention of the child and adolescent problem behavior: A conceptual and empirical formulation. Clin. Child Fam. Psychol. Rev. 1: 61–75.
Dishion, T. J., Patterson, G. R., Stoolmiller, M., and Skinner, M. L. (1991). Family, school, and behavioral antecedents to early adolescents involvement with antisocial peers. Dev. Psychol. 27: 172–180.
Dornbush, S. M., and Wood, K. (1989). Family processes and educational achievement. In Weston, W. J. (ed.), Education and the American Family: A Research Synthesis. New York University Press, New York.
Duncan, S. C., Duncan, T. E., Biglan, A., and Ary, D. (1998). Contribution of the social context to the development of adolescent substance use: A multivariate latent growth modeling approach. Drug Alcohol Depend. 50: 57–71.
Elliott, D. S., Huizinga, D., and Ageton, S. S. (1985). Explaining Delinquency and Drug Use. Sage, Beverly Hills, CA.
Facio, A., and Batistuta, M. (1998). Latins, Catholics and from the far south: Argentinean adolescents and their parents. J. Adolesc. 21: 49–67.
Farrington, D. P., and Loeber, R. (2000). Epidemiology of juvenile violence. Child Adolesc. Psychiatric Clin. North Am. 9: 733–748.
Fréchette, M., and Leblanc, M. (1979). La délinquance cachée à l'adolescence [Hidden delinquency at adolescence]. RIJ, Montreal.
Fuligni, A. J., and Eccles J. S. (1993). Perceived parent–child relationships and early adolescents' orientation toward peers. Dev. Psychol. 29: 622–632.
Fuligni, A. J., and Eccles J. S., Barber, B. L., and Clements, P. (2001). Early adolescent peer orientation and adjustment during high school. Dev. Psychol. 37: 28–36.
Herman, M. R., Dornbush, S. M., Herron, M. C., and Herting, J. R. (1997). The influence of family regulation, connection, and psychological autonomy on six measures of adolescent functioning. J. Adolesc. Res. 12: 34–67.
Hu, L., and Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Struct. Equation Model. 6: 1–55.
Jessor, R., Van Den Bos, J., Vanderryn, J., Costa, F. M., and Turbin, M. (1995). Protective factors in adolescent problem behavior: Moderator effects and developmental change. Dev. Psychol. 31: 923–933.
Jessor, R., Van Den Bos, J., Vanderryn, J., Costa, F., and Turbin, M. S. (1997). Protective factors in adolescent problem behavior: Moderator effects and developmental change. In Marlatt, G., and VandenBos, G. R. (eds.), Addictive Behaviors: Readings on Etiology, Prevention, and Treatment. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, pp. 239–264.
Kandel, D. B. (1996). The parental and peer context of adolescent deviance: An algebra of interpersonal influences. J. Drug Issues 26: 298–315.
Kobak, R. R., and Sceery, A. (1988). Attachment in adolescence: Working models, affect regulation, and representations of self and others. Child Dev. 59: 135–146.
Lamborn, S. D., Mounts, N. S., Steinberg, L., and Dornbusch, S. M. (1991). Patterns of competence and adjustment among adolescents from authoritative, authoritarian, indulgent, and neglectful families. Child Dev. 62: 1049–1065.
Lanz, M. (1997). Parent-Offspring communication scale: Applicazione ad un campione italiano [Parent-Offspring communication scale: A study on a Italian sample]. Bolletino di Psicologgia Applicata 24: 33–38.
Larson, R. W., and Richards, M. H. (1991). Daily companionship in late childhood and early adolescence: Changing developmental context. Child Dev. 62: 284–300.
Laursen, B., and Williams, V. A. (1997). Perception of interdependence and closeness in family and peer relationships among adolescents with and without romantic partners. In Shulman, S., and Collins, W. A. (eds.), Romntic Relationships in Adolescence: Developmental Perspectives. New Direction for Child Development, No. 78, Jossey Bass, San Fransisco.
Le Blanc, M., and Loeber, R. (1998). Developmental criminology updated. Crime Justice 23: 115–198.
Loeber, R. (1990). Development and risk factors of juvenile antisocial behavior and delinquency. Clin. Rev. 10: 1–41.
Loeber, R., and Dishion, T. J. (1983). Early predictor of male delinquency: A review. Psychol. Bull. 94: 68–99.
Loeber, R., and Stouthamer-Loeber, M. (1998). Development of juvenile aggression and violence: Some common misconception and controversies. Am. Psychologist 53: 242–259.
Maccoby, E. E., and Martin, J. A. (1983). Socialization in the context of the family: Parent–child interaction. In Hetherington, E. M. (ed.), Handbook of Child Psychology, Vol. 4: Socialization, Personality and Social Development. Wiley, New York.
McCallum, R. C., and Tucker, L. R. (1991). Representing sources of error in the common-factor model: Implications for theory and practice. Psychol. Bull. 109: 501–511.
McGoldrick, M. (1982). Normal families: An ethnic perspective. In Walsh, F. (ed.), Normal Family Processes. The Guilford Press, New York.
Moffitt, T. E., Caspi, A., Rutter, M., and Silva, P. A. (2001). Sex Differences in Antisocial Behavior: Conduct Disorder, Delinquency, and Violence in the Dunedin Longitudinal Study. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.
Muthén, B., and Muthén, L. (2000). Integrating person-centered and variable-centered analyses: Growth mixture modeling with latent trajectory classes. Alcohol. Clin. Exp. Res. 24: 882–891.
Nagin, D., and Tremblay, R. E. (1999). Trajectories of boys physical aggression, opposition, and hyperactivity on the path to physically violent and non-violent delinquency. Child Dev. 70: 1181–1196.
Noller, P., and Callan, V. J. (1990). Adolescents' perception of the nature of their communication with parents. J. Youth Adolesc. 19: 349–360.
Parker, G., Tupling, H., and Brown, I. B. (1979). A parental bonding instrument. Br. J. Med. Psychol. 52: 1–10.
Patterson, G. R. (1982). Coercive Family Process. Castalia, Eugene, OR.
Patterson, G. R., and Dishion, T. J. (1985). Contribution of families, peers to delinquency. Criminology 23: 63–79.
Patterson, G. R., Dishion, T. J., and Yoerger K. L. (2000). Adolescent growth in new forms of problem behavior: Macro- and micro-peer dynamics. Prev. Sci. 1: 3–13.
Patterson, G. R., Reid, J. B., and Dishion, T. J. (1992). Antisocial Boys. Castalia Press, Eugene.
Patterson, G. R., and Stouthamer-Loeber, M. (1984). The correlation of family management practices and delinquency. Child Dev. 55: 1299–1307.
Patterson G. R., and Yoerger, K. (1997). A developmental model for late onset delinquency. In Dienstbier, R., and Osgood, D. W. (eds.), The Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, Vol. 44: Motivation and Delinquency. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, pp. 119–177.
Printz, R., Foster, S., Kent, R., and O'Leary, K. (1979). Multivariate assessment of conflict in distressed and nondistressed mother-adolescent dyads. J. Appl. Behav. Anal. 12: 691–700.
Reise, S. P., Widaman, K. F., and Pugh, R. H. (1993). Confirmatory factor analysis and item response theory: Two approaches for exploring measurement invariance. Psychol. Bull. 114: 552–566.
Rice K. G. (1990). Attachment in adolescence: A narrative and meta-analytic review. J. Youth Adolesc. 19: 511–538.
Rutter, M., Giller, H., and Hagel, A. (1998). Antisocial Behavior in Young People. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Sears, R. R., Maccoby, E. E., and Levin, H. (1957). Patterns of Child Rearing. Row, Peterson, Evanston.
Schaefer, E. S. (1965). Children's reports of parental behavior: An inventory. Child Dev. 36: 413–424.
Sgritta, G. B. (1988). The Italian family. J. Fam. Issues 9: 372–393.
Sorenson, A. M., Brownfield, D., and Jensen, G. F. (1997). Constructing comparable measures of delinquency by gender: A theoretical and an empirical inquiry. In Rost, J., and Langeheine, R. (eds.), Applications of Latent Trait and Latent Class Models in the Social Sciences. Waxmann, Berlin.
Spiegel, J. (1982). An ecological model of ethnic families. In McGoldrick, M., Pearce, J. K., and Giordano, J. (eds.), Ethicity and Family Therapy. The Guilford Press, New York.
Storvoll, E. E., and Wichstrom, L. (2002). Do the risk factors associated with conduct problems in adolescents vary according to gender? J. Adolesc. 25: 182–202.
Thornberry, T. P., and Krohn, M. D. (1997). Peers, drug use, and delinquency. In Stoff, D. M., Breiling, J., and Maser, J. D. (eds.), Handbook of Antisocial Behavior. Wiley, New York.
Tremblay, R. E. (2000). The development of aggressive behavior during childhood: What have we learned in the past century? Int. J. Behav. Dev. 24: 129–141.
Van Yzendoorn, M. H. (1997). Attachment, emergent morality, and aggression: Towards a developmental socioemotional model of antisocial behavior. lnt. J. Behav. Dev. 21: 703–727.
Vitaro, F., Brendgen, M., and Tremblay, R. E. (2000). Influence of deviant friends on delinquency: Searching for moderator variables. J. Abnorm. Child Psychol. 28: 313–325.
Wills, T. A., Mariani, J., and Filler, M. (1996). The role of family and peer relationships in adolescent substance use. In Pierce, G. R., Sarason, B. R., and Sarason, I. G. (eds.), Handbook of the Social Support and the Family. Plenum Press, New York, pp. 495–549.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Michel Claes is full professor at the Université de Montréal, Canada. He received his Ph.D. in Education from Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium. His major research interest is in social development in adolescence, with a special focus on intercultural studies.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Claes, M., Lacourse, E., Ercolani, AP. et al. Parenting, Peer Orientation, Drug Use, and Antisocial Behavior in Late Adolescence: A Cross-National Study. J Youth Adolescence 34, 401–411 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-005-7258-8
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-005-7258-8